Briefing for Executive Vice-President Vestager
Meeting with Minister Bruno Le Maire
4 July 2022
SUMMARY
• The meeting is with
Minister Bruno Le Maire.
• 04/07/2022 12:00-12:30.
• Briefing covering:
o semiconductors
o [...]
OBJECTIVES
[...]
SEMICONDUCTORS – CHIPS ACT
KEY MESSAGES
• The semiconductor value chain is highly dependent on a few actors and geographies
and global shortages have led to factory closures in a range of sectors, from cars to
healthcare devices. The EU's share of the global microchips market is less than 10%.
• This has led the Commission to propose the European Chips Act on 8 February 2022
to boost the EU’s investment in the European chip ecosystem, including production.
The Chips Act is a good example of
open strategic autonomy in practice: it caters
for targeted support and actions to tackle market failures to improve both EU’s
competitiveness and technological autonomy.
•
Competition rules, including State aid rules, wil continue to apply to the
semiconductors sector to ensure that public support granted crowds in private
investments and benefits the entire European economy. Pillar 2 of the Chips Act
aims to improve security of supply: it opens the possibility of Member States’
support for manufacturing activities,
without any amendment to existing State aid
rules.
• The Commission will use the existing possibilities for approval of investment aid
directly under Article 107(3)(c) TFEU. This provision allows the Commission to
approve State aid to facilitate the development of certain economic activities, if the
positive effects of such State aid outweigh its potential negative impact on trade
and competition.
• The Commission will assess each case on its own merits, considering the very
specific and acute challenges of the semiconductor value chain and its key role for
the European economy. In particular, the Commission will consider if:
o Financed facilities are
“first-of a kind” in Europe, i.e. they plan to produce
technologies that are not substantively present in Europe, for example in
terms of size, material or performance. A number of innovation dimensions
can be considered, not only (smaller) node sizes. For example, a project
could still be qualified as “first-of-a kind” if it aims to produce mature chips
having better safety, reliability or performance than chips already
manufactured in Europe;
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Basis Cab Vestager/1013
Briefing for Executive Vice-President Vestager
Meeting with Minister Bruno Le Maire
4 July 2022
o The public support covers the
proven funding gap (i.e. the minimum
amount necessary to make sure such investments take place in Europe). This
approach allows the Commission to take into account subsidies offered by
third countries (if sufficiently proven);
• There are
additional positive effects to offset risks of competition distortion such
as: positive effects on security of supply, positive contribution in attracting qualified
workforce or positive impact on innovation in Europe.
Contact:
[...]
[...]
2
Basis Cab Vestager/1013
Document Outline
- Semiconductors – Chips act
- The semiconductor value chain is highly dependent on a few actors and geographies and global shortages have led to factory closures in a range of sectors, from cars to healthcare devices. The EU's share of the global microchips market is less than 10%.
- This has led the Commission to propose the European Chips Act on 8 February 2022 to boost the EU’s investment in the European chip ecosystem, including production. The Chips Act is a good example of open strategic autonomy in practice: it caters for...
- Competition rules, including State aid rules, will continue to apply to the semiconductors sector to ensure that public support granted crowds in private investments and benefits the entire European economy. Pillar 2 of the Chips Act aims to improve...
- The Commission will use the existing possibilities for approval of investment aid directly under Article 107(3)(c) TFEU. This provision allows the Commission to approve State aid to facilitate the development of certain economic activities, if the p...
- The Commission will assess each case on its own merits, considering the very specific and acute challenges of the semiconductor value chain and its key role for the European economy. In particular, the Commission will consider if:
- o Financed facilities are “first-of a kind” in Europe, i.e. they plan to produce technologies that are not substantively present in Europe, for example in terms of size, material or performance. A number of innovation dimensions can be considered, not...
- o The public support covers the proven funding gap (i.e. the minimum amount necessary to make sure such investments take place in Europe). This approach allows the Commission to take into account subsidies offered by third countries (if sufficiently p...
- There are additional positive effects to offset risks of competition distortion such as: positive effects on security of supply, positive contribution in attracting qualified workforce or positive impact on innovation in Europe.
